Collapsible display-easel



17 I I! i3 20 L7 Z4 \1 J. H. WILLIAMSON. COLLAPSIBLE DISPLAY EASEL. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 18. I915.

222; gwmg m Patented Au 15, 1916.

JOSEPH H. WILLIAMSON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

COLLAPSIBLE DISILAY-EASEL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 15, rare.

Application filed September 18, 1915. Serial No. 51,307.

' To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH H. 1VILL1AM- SON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State.

of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in; Collapsible DllS- play-Easels, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in collapsible display easelssuch as are commonly placed upon counters, showcases and the like, of retail stores for the purpose of attractively displaying and packaged articles.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide an easel of card board or other suitable material which may be readily folded into compact flat form for packaging with the articles to be displayed, and for convenient shipment and which may be easily unfolded and opened for display of merchandise without the necessity of locking or pasting any easel parts together.

Another object of my invention is to provide such an easel which may be readily constructed from a single strip of cardboard, scored at its hinged points, and pasted at one place only, thus facilitating the construction ofthe device and materiallyreducing its cost of manufacture.

Another objectof my invention is to provide such an easel in which the article itself when displayed thereon may form strut or brace member for holding the easel in extended position.

Referring to the drawings wherein I have illustrated the preferred form of my invention together with two modifications thereof; Figure 1 is a perspective view of one form of my improved easel showing it in extended position, ready to receive an article. Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 22 of Fig. 1, showing a package in serted in the easel for display in one mannera Fig. 3 is aside elevation of the easel shown in Figs. 1 and 2, when collapsed. Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view through a modified form of my easel showing it in use with different articles and;' Fig. 5 is a similar vertical sectional view through a second modification.

advertising The preferred form of my invention illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, together with its modifications shown in Figs. 4 and 5, comprise in general a base section, a front section and a rear section, hingedly connected at their corners, the front section being scored or hinged intermediate its ends to permit collapse of the easel for ready transportation or storage. Preferably the construction in each case is such that the displayed article itself maybe instrumental in aiding or insuring the maintenance of such relation of the easel-parts as will prevent the collapse of the easel.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, it will be noted that the easel comprises a base section, front and rear limbs hingedly connected thereto and to each'other for generallytriangular positioning when erected, one of said limbs having a hinge-score between its connections with the base and with the other limb, whereby the easel may fold with its collapsible limb doubled between the base and the other limb. Specifically I preferably provide such arrangement in a single sheet of card-board scored or hinged on four parallel lines 10, 11, 12 and 13, dividing the strip into fivesections. The section 14 intermediate the scored lines 11 and 12, constitute the base member upon which the easel rests. The sections 15 and 16, the former above the scored line 13 and the latter below it, together comprise the front limb or face portion of the easel against which the article is displayed. Section 17 intermediate scored lines 10 and 11 forms a back limb or member for bracing the front section, the end section 18 abovethe scored line 10 being pasted or otherwise fastened to the rear face of section 15.

An opening 19 may be formed in the front limb or face member and a portion of the material cutaway to form such opening may be left attached to the lowerlip of the opening at a hinge-score 20, to form a foldable brace, hinge-scored as at 21 so that its portion 22 between the hin es may bend down into a vertical strut while itsextremity 23 extends fiat along the base 1 1. This brace 22-23 itself tends materially to prevent accidental collapse of the erected easel,

though when it is flattened-out to lie in the opening 19 it permits intentional collapsing of the easel 'to be effected without hindrance. If a rather heavy article, like a loaded 'con-' tainer A"-is placed on the tongue 23 the easel is amply braced for many display purposes.

As shown in Figs. 4: and 5, however such a brace as 2223 is a refinement that may be done away with. The article displayed may itself be utilized as a mechanical element bracing the collapsible front-limb against accidental folding. As shown in Fig. 4 the easel, identical with that of Figs. 1 and 2 except for omission of the bracetongue, has the article A placed therein to bear at its bottom on the lip of opening 19 and at its top against the'section 15 of the easel. Indotted lines adifferent character of article A is shown similarly disposed.

- Under theweight of the displayed article the hinged front straightens out until a balance or equilibrium of forces is attained, and such relation of the parts is sufiiciently stable for very effective display-use. Of course the front limb cannot collapse, as the weight of the displayed article prevents it, the article acting as a strut across the hingejoint 13.

In Fig. 5 I have shown another embodiment of the invention, in which two tongues 24 and 25, sprung'outpf the portions 16 and 15 of the easel, receive between them the article A so that the tendency of hinge 13 to collapse only pinches the article more tightly between the tongues.

Any one of the easels shown may be folded to the position shown in Fig. 3, after removal ofthe displayed article. The tongues (22-23 of Fig. 2 or 2425 of Fig. 5) are brought into the planes of the portions from which the tongues are cut, and then, of

connected at their edges to form when merected a generally-triangular structure,

there being a hinge formed in the front limb intermediate its ends to permit collapse'of the structure, and meanscomprising the article to be displayed for bracing said front limb to prevent its movement about the last mentioned hinge. 2. A collapsible display easel comprising I base, front, and back members, hingedly connected to form a triangular structure, the

front member extending above its hinge connection with the back member, there being a hinge formed in the front member intermediate its connection with the base and the back members to permit collapse of the structure, and means on the lower portion of the front member to support the bottom of an article to be displayed, the upper end of which projects across the last mentioned hinge and rests upon the upper extension of the front member.

3. A collapsible display easel comprising a single strip of cardboard scored on parallel lines intermediate its ends to provide a base portion, the front and back portions of the strip being brought together and permanently secured above a scored line in the back member thereby forming a triangular structure, there being a hinge formed in the front member intermediate its connection with the base and rearmembers'to permit collapse of the structure, and means comprising the article to be displayed for bracing said front member to prevent its movement about the last mentioned hinge.

4. A collapsible display easel comprising 1 a single strip of cardboard scoredon parallel lines intermediate its ends to provide a base portion, the front and back portions of the strip being brought together and permanently secured above a scored line in the back member thereby forming a triangular structure, there being a hinge formed in" the front member intermediate its connection with the base and rear members to permit collapse of the structure, :said front member having an opening formed therein near its lower portion to receive the base of an article to be displayed, the upper end of which rests upon the face membernected at their edges to form when erected a generally triangular structure, there being a hinge formed in one of said limbs to permit collapse of the structure, and a brace member of material cut from the front limb to form an article receiving opening and joined to the front limb at the lower edge of the opening, said brace member being downwardly bent to engage the base and provide a brace to hold the structure in erected position. v r

6. A collapsible display easel comprising base, front and back limbs hingedly connected at their edges to form when erected a generally triangular structure, there being a hinge formed in one of said limbs to permit collapse of the structure, and abrace member of material cut from the front limb to form an article receiving opening and joined to the front limb at the lower edge of the opening, said brace member being 'i downwardly and rearwardly bent, the doWnhand in the presence of two subscribing galrdly bent portion providing a brace t3 Witnesses.

0 the structure in erecte position, an the rearwardly bent portion adapted to re- JOSEPH WILLIAMSON 5 ceive the base of an article and hold the In presence ofbrace in operative position. STANLEY W. 0001:, In testimony whereof I hereunto set my MARY F. ALLEN. 

